Generally, a transmission is a device for transferring engine power to driving wheels by converting engine power into appropriate rotational force and velocity for a driving state of a vehicle. The transmission can be either a manual transmission or an automatic transmission. A shift lever is operated by a driver to select shift stages in the manual transmission or the automatic transmission.
With respect to the manual transmission, engine power is transferred to the transmission through a cable or a rod when a driver selects a proper gear by shifting a lever. In the automatic transmission, the shift lever drives an inhibitor switch through a cable such that a movement made by the driver is transferred to the transmission.
Recently, an electronic shift lever has been widely used instead of a mechanical shift lever. In an electronic shift lever, shifting is controlled electronically using an actuator to operate mechanical coupling between a transmission, a shift lever, and an engine control unit (ECU).
The electronic shift lever has advantages that, cable-coupling structures are not necessary, operation force and operation feeling of the shift lever are excellent, and the operation thereof is simple. However, the conventional electronic shift lever has disadvantages similar to those of the mechanical shift lever. As shown in FIG. 1, the conventional electronic shift lever, like the mechanical shift lever, protrudes from the console of a vehicle in order to be operated using a front/rearward motion. That is, since the electronic shift lever protrudes over a console of a vehicle, a head of a driver may be injured when a vehicle accident occurs, and the appearance of the interior of the vehicle is not aesthetically pleasing. Additionally, the conventional electronic shift lever occupies significant space, and thus space for a cup holder or function buttons is limited.
In the conventional electronic shift lever, the shift stage is displayed on a shift lever handle with small size so that a driver may have difficulty in recognizing the characters displayed on the handle.
The description provided above of the related art of the present disclosure is just for enhancement of understanding the background of the present disclosure, and therefore, should not be construed as being included in the related art known by those skilled in the art.